


'Heat'

by TiredScienceBro



Series: Science Bros Week 2018 [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Being Lost, Camping, Hulk (Marvel) Feels, Hulk Talks (Marvel), Hulk goes fishing, Hurt Tony Stark, Lost in the mountains, M/M, Protective Hulk (Marvel), Science Bros, Sciencebrosweek2018
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-07-25
Packaged: 2019-06-15 14:03:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15414552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TiredScienceBro/pseuds/TiredScienceBro
Summary: He [Tony] turned uncomfortably and laid on his side watching what he could only describe as the Hulk, attempting to catch fish from a river. His large hands were far too slow to effectively catch anything but this was obviously not enough to put the Hulk off of the activity. The Hulk surprised himself as he managed to seize a fish, nearly dropping it as it attempted to wriggle free from his grasp.





	'Heat'

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Science Bros Week 2018, prompt 'Heat'.

Screaming across the sky the Quinjet engines whined as Clint attempted to out maneuver the inbound missiles. 

What was supposed to be a routine reconnaissance mission had quickly revealed itself to be a trap. Tony had taken the brunt of the surprise attack but Thor had managed to get him back to the Quinjet safely before any lasting damage could be done. Now Bruce was doing his best to administer medical attention while Clint attempted to keep them in the air. It was almost impossible to administer any lasting first aid to Tony as Clint executed evasive maneuvers but Bruce was doing his best. At least he had managed to get the Iron Man suit off, much to Tony's protests but now the constant complaining and insistence he was fine was not helping.

"Let me get the suit back on!" Tony screamed as they were thrown across the rear of the jet. "The others need me!"

"Not in this condition!" Bruce roared in response, attempting to keep Tony pinned down and stop the head wound from reopening. "You'll just do more damage to yourself."

"Then it's code green time!" Tony snarled. "Get out there and help them."

"Not when you need me in here," Bruce responded.

Before Tony could yell at him again they were thrown roughly against the wall of the Quinjet. A blast of hot air and now the rushing of wind alerted Bruce to the fact that the jet had been hit. Medical supplies and other loose objects begun to be sucked out of the jet behind them. Risking a look, Bruce could see a large hole had been blow in their side, there was nothing stopping them from being sucked out. He reached out for Tony and felt his friend doing the same, together they clung to each other. 

“INCOMING!” Clint screamed from the cockpit.

Another loud explosion and erupted near them, causing them to lose their grips on the Quinjet. They were being sucked out the newest hole in the hull of the jet. Bruce managed to reach out his had and seize another secure part of the hull, looking at Tony he could see that the latest impact had knocked him unconscious.

Bruce clung to the jet with as much strength as he could muster while trying to keep a grip on Tony's arm. The Hulk was awake now and ready to take control but Bruce knew that a transformation now would save himself but could cost him his grip on Tony. It would be too hard to transform and focus enough attention on retaining his grip on Tony. The strain against his arm was too much, his muscles felt like they were on fire as he attempted to keep both himself and the weight of Tony secure. His grip was loosening in both ends, and he knew that he had to make a decision, let go of Tony and save himself, or let go of the Quinjet and allow both of them to be sucked out together.

In a split second Bruce made his decision. He let go of the jet.

In an instant they were swept away from the Quinjet as it shot across the sky, fire erupting from it's engines. Bruce didn't have time to take in a damage report on the jet, all he was focused on was the feel of Tony's wrist in his own grip. They were free falling now and Bruce was struggling to keep his grip around Tony as they plummeted closer and closer towards the Earth. 

Below them the mountain side was approaching quickly and Bruce's panic finally caught up with him. The Hulk surged to life in his mind and Bruce did nothing to stop him. His fear turned to anger and his screams became ferocious roars. 

The Hulk realised that not only was he falling towards the ground at an alarming speed but that there was another body against him, it was the Iron man but he wasn't awake. Banner always did pick the worst times to surrender control.

As they plummeted the final few hundred metres the Hulk knew what he had to do, cradling the small injured man tight and protective against chest in his arms he rolled, bracing for the force of the impact. 

The tree branches were the first to hit, cracking and splintering as he crashed through the thick forest into the earth below. 

**

Tony begun to stir, his head felt like it had been put in a vice, there was something hot and wet on his head too. Raising his hand up revealed that an open wound still oozing blood was the culprit. The ground was cold and hard, but at least he could feel it, he counted that as a victory.  
Sitting up he could now see that he was outside, in a clearing surrounded on all sides by thick pine trees. The air felt was fresh and everything around him was silent so he breathed in heavily, happy that at least for now he was somewhere peaceful.

His peace was interrupted by an unfamiliar sound and alerted him to the fact that he was not alone. A splashing noise followed by the delighted laugh from the Hulk filled Tony with a small amount of relief. 

He turned uncomfortably and laid on his side watching what he could only describe as the Hulk, attempting to catch fish from a river. His large hands were far too slow to effectively catch anything but this was obviously not enough to put the Hulk off of the activity. The Hulk surprised himself as he managed to seize a fish, nearly dropping it as it attempted to wriggle free from his grasp. 

Tony thought back to the last thing that he remembered. He had been on the Quinjet with Bruce, who had refused to let him go back out and join the fight with the other Avengers. Something had hit the Quinjet, he would have to give Clint a hard time about that later and pretend to revoke his pilot's license. There was no sign of Clint anywhere though, just him and the Hulk.  
Tony attempted to call out to his friend but his throat wasn't cooperating. He instead decided to focus his energy on pulling himself up so he could sit. He wasn't wearing his suit, which meant no way of contacting JARVIS to tell them where they were. Injured without his suit and stuck in the middle of nowhere with only the Hulk for company, this was going to be a challenge.

He frowned as he watched the Hulk happily splashing around in the river, he had never seen the Hulk looking this happy, except when he was smashing enemies without abandon but this, this was different. It reminded him of Bruce, in those odd moments when he dropped his guard and allowed something fill him with excitement. There was no nervousness or regard for his surroundings, just pure happiness. 

The Hulk looked over and saw that Tony was watching, he waved excitedly and Tony couldn't help but return the gesture. The Hulk returned to his attempts at catching the fish swimming around his feet while Tony sat quietly and watched. There was something oddly therapeutic about watching the Hulk like this, especially after the chaos of everything that had just happened to them.

Eventually the Hulk returned to the bank of the river."Hulk catch fish!" he explained gleefully, dumping an armful of freshly caught fish onto the ground in front of Tony. 

"Thanks, Big Guy." Tony couldn't think of what else to say. He had never seen the Hulk like this, so relaxed and almost at home. The Hulk sat with a thud on the ground beside him, reached for one of the fish and without a moment of hesitation the Hulk bit into the raw flesh. Tony's stomach turned at the sound of the tiny creatures bones snapping between the Hulk's teeth and the smell that resulted. The Hulk gave Tony a curious look as he attempted not retch. 

"Want some?" the Hulk asked, offering the half eaten fish to Tony. It had been bad enough at a distance but having the fish shoved in his face was more than enough to send Tony over the edge, pushing the Hulk's hand away and twisting himself so he was no longer staring at the thing. 

"Tony, sick?" The Hulk asked concerned. Tony felt a large hand attempt to rest gently on his back but the weight of it only pushed him down further. He supposed he had to give the credit for at least trying. 

"I'm fine Big Guy," Tony assured him, pushing himself against the Hulk's hand so he could show the Hulk that he was fine. Taking a deep breath and composing himself he made an obvious display of looking at their surroundings. "How did we get out here?"

"Bad people attack, Tony and puny Banner fall from jet, Hulk save." The Hulk explained. 

"And I couldn't be more grateful," Tony said placing a reassuring hand on the Hulk's leg. He was glad to have the Hulk here but he wanted Bruce back now. Bruce would be much better at helping Tony find a way of contacting the others and attending to his injuries but he knew the Hulk might be offended if Tony gave any hint that he prefered the Doctor's company over his own. The last thing Tony needed was the Hulk storming off in a tantrum. He would have to wait it out, perhaps the Hulk would grow bored and transform back soon. 

"We should find cave," the Hulk interrupted, throwing the last of the fish into his mouth. 

"W-what?" Tony stammered, surprised to hear a statement like that coming from the Hulk. 

"Find cave." The Hulk explained, fish scales flying from his mouth as he attempted to speak with his mouth full. "Night time cold in mountains, caves keep little man warm," the Hulk pointed at Tony before swallowing the last of the fish.

Tony hated the idea of them being out here the entire night, surely the others would be able to find them soon, would they really need to wait that long for rescue? He was Tony Stark, billionaire playboy, surely it would be priority one for him to be found. Looking at their situation however he realised that without his suit or any other piece of Stark tech there was no way from anyone to track their location. He could see the orange sky overheard and realised that it must have been later than he assumed. No doubt it would be cold soon just as the Hulk said. 

"Yeah," Tony finally agreed, looking at his companion. "Shelters a good plan."

With some difficulty he attempted to pull himself up off the ground, as he stood the earth spun underneath him and his hand shot out to steady himself and was luckily caught the Hulk. Before he could protest he was being lifted off of his feet. The Hulk hoisted him up onto his shoulders, and Tony's gripped nervously at the Hulk's head in an attempt to not fall backwards. Once they set off Tony relaxed, realising that the Hulk's broad shoulders gave him more than enough room to sit comfortably. Normally he would have complained to travel in such an undignified position but at the moment he was just happy to not have to walk. 

Tony had never really done the whole camping thing when he was a child. Howard certainly never would have brought him out into the great outdoors for any father son bonding. The Hulk however appeared to have an odd offinaty for it. Without any doubt he was moving through the trees with a clear destination in mind. 

"Been out here before Big Guy?" Tony joked in an attempt to lighten the mood. 

"Hulk spend lots of time in mountains," he responded without hesitation.

It suddenly dawned on Tony, all those years of being on the run. "You used to hide in the mountains? Before you joined the Avengers?"

"People not come up to places like this. Hulk not have to hide from people in mountains." There was an edge of sadness in the Hulk' voice as he spoke. 

Tony felt terrible, he looked around and took at how still and silent everything was. The only sounds were that of the Hulk's footsteps and the occasional bird call and the nearby rush of the river. It suddenly felt a lot more lonely than he had noticed before and the thought of the Hulk waking up alone here in the mountains was threatening to break his heart.

He had only known the Hulk as a loud and hearty creature, appearing in their greatest times of need and making his presence known to everyone around him, not a quiet lonely creature who lived alone in isolation up the side of a mountain. And Bruce, poor Bruce who would wake up in a place like this and have to survive the wilderness with nothing. Tony rested his chin amongst the Hulk's hair and attempted to hold back a tear as the realization of the horrors of his friends past caught up to him. 

"I hope the others are okay," Tony said looking up at the sky overheard. 

"Others look after each other," the Hulk stated. "Hulk look after Tony." 

"And who's going to look after you?" Tony asked turning his attention back down to the Hulk. He was joustled as the Hulk shrugged in response. 

"Hulk look after Hulk," he replied. 

"You've got me," Tony offered.

The Hulk let out a short laugh in response. 

"Hey! What's wrong with having me look after you?" 

"Tony small and puny, Hulk big and strong. Not need looking after."

Tony shook his head and laughed. "Well, I suppose you've got me there. How about we look after each other anyway?" 

They reached a rocky outcrop in which Tony spotted an entrance to a cave. The sun was much lower in the sky now and Tony could feel a chill forming in the air. He described as best he could the resources they would need to find in order to build a fire and with a nod of understanding the Hulk set out to find them. It wasn't long before he had returned and Tony managed to get the campfire going. 

"If only we had marshmallows," Tony joked as he warmed his hands against the fire, smiling up at the Hulk. 

"What that?" the Hulk asked, tilting his head curiously at Tony. 

"Fluffy candy," Tony explained. "You put it on a stick and cook it over the fire. It melts a bit and then you try to eat it without burning your mouth." 

"Hulk never done anything like that before."

"Well," Tony began with a grin, "the next time you and I go camping, I promise we'll have some." He didn't really know why he said it, it wasn't like he and the Hulk were ever going camping together. It was a hollow promise, but one he felt like he should make. 

"Hulk like that," the Hulk responded turning his gaze back to the crackling fire, a smile appearing on his face. 

Hearing the Hulk talk like that lifted Tony's spirit a little bit, the longer they were out here together the more he was learning about his green rage monster friend. He had been so quick to want Bruce back that he hadn't stopped to realise what an opportunity this was to learn more about their other half. Without the chaos and agitation of the city, the Hulk was much more open and relaxed than Tony was used to seeing him. 

"Okay!" Tony exclaimed looking over at the Hulk and shifting his body closer to his friend. "You and me, camping, together. It's a promise." He stuck out his hand towards the Hulk who starred curiously between it and Tony's face. Tony reached out and guided the Hulk's hand into his own so they could shake hands. The Hulk beamed back at him, clearly understanding the meaning of Tony's gesture. 

They sat together in silence for a while, Tony resting his head against the Hulk's arm and running through the events of the day and everything he had witnessed. At first he had been terrified of being stuck out here but now there was not a doubt in his mind that they would be fine. The Hulk had proven himself more than capable of not only looking after himself but Tony too. He couldn't wait to tell Bruce everything he had seen today. Eventually he felt his eyelids growing heavy, and he was relieved to discover that he would be comfortable falling asleep in this cave, knowing that the Hulk was watching over him.

He laid down on the hard ground as close to the fire as he dared. There was no blankets or pillows to speak of so he would have to rely on the warmth of the fire. He closed his eyes and attempted to let sleep take him. He tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable but it was now becoming obvious that despite his best intentions, it would be harder to sleep here than he thought. The fire was not doing the best job at keeping him warm either, his stark shirt was thin and left his arms exposed, causing him to shiver. 

Then Tony heard the Hulk shifting towards him. There was a thud as the Hulk lowered himself onto the ground behind Tony, buffering him from the draft coming from the cave entrance. Tony felt a nudge at the back of his head and recognised the gesture, he lifted his head and let the Hulk's arm snake around him, allowing Tony to use it as a pillow. 

At first Tony was unsure how to feel about being being spooned by the Hulk but the warmth and comfort he now felt by having his friend beside him quickly banished any doubts he had. The slow rumble of the Hulk's breathing was comforting feeling and Tony sighed contently as the two lay side by side together. He wondered if he should include this detail in his recount of the story to Bruce. The image of Bruce becoming flustered at the idea of the Hulk and Tony spooning made him grin. That settled it, he was telling him. 

 

Tony was unfortunately robbed of the chance to tell Bruce about his and the Hulk's night in each others arms. He had been looking forward to exaggerating the details just to watch Bruce squirm but now it appeared he missed out on that chance. When he woke it was no longer the giant green arms of the Hulk that shielded him from the warmth but Bruce's. Fast asleep and most likely exhausted from his transformation, Bruce clung to Tony so protectively just as the Hulk had been last night. Tony looked down Bruce's sleeping face nestled closely against his shoulder.

Tony couldn't help but smile at the sight of the unknowing Doctor Banner sleeping so peacefully against him. Not wanting to wake him up Tony remained still, slowly snaking his hand up towards Bruce hair and running his hand gently through the curls. Bruce would never allow anyone this close to him knowingly, so Tony was going to take full advantage to show the man some affection that he so often denied himself. 

It wasn't long before Bruce begun to stir against him and Tony made no attempt to hide or spare Bruce from the situation he was waking up into. Bruce's head shifted and his arms loosened their grip from around Tony.

"Good morning sunshine," Tony said cheerfully, unable to control his grin. 

Bruce sat up, quickly pulling his arm out from under Tony's neck and looking around in confusion at their surrounds. "Tony, what is-"

"Shh, it's okay," Tony assured him, sitting up so they were facing each other. "We're safe." 

Bruce shot Tony a confused yet suspicious look before looking around to take in their surroundings. "Where are we?" 

"In a cave on a mountainside, lost in the wilderness with no chance of rescue. But don't worry about that," Tony teased, "come back to bed." He playfully grabbed at Bruce's arm and was rewarded with the exact terrified look he had intended to provoke. 

"How did we get here?" Bruce asked as he attempted to shift himself away from Tony but was hindered by the remains of the Hulk's pants that he was tangled up in. 

Tony knew that Bruce was attempting to change the subject but wasn't about to let it go that easily. "Well, I was cold and needed a way to keep warm, the Hulk obliged."

Bruce shot him an annoyed look. "You know what I mean," he grumbled, attempting to pull his ill fitting pants up to conceal his modesty as best as possible. 

"Oh, come on Doc, lighten up," Tony teased, pulling himself up off the ground. "No one else is around and it's nothing to be ashamed of. I mean, look at how handsome I am, I'm surprised it's taken you this long to get your hands on me." He flashed a winning smile at Bruce whose expression remained miserable. 

After everything that Bruce and the Hulk had done to look after him it was time to return the favor. Sighing, he walked forward and placed his arm protectively around Bruce's shoulders, moving him towards the cave entrance. 

"Let's get the hell out of here," Tony said.

**Author's Note:**

> I quite like this piece and I am tempted to write a follow up chapter to finish it off. Let me know if you'd like to see more of Bruce and Tony's adventure in the wilderness.


End file.
